


We’ve died for so long, let’s just get out alive

by adaintywomanofmystery



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: AFTG Summer Exchange 2019, Fae!Andrew, Found Family, Implied/Referenced Violence, M/M, non-graphic injury, vampire!neil
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-16
Updated: 2019-08-16
Packaged: 2020-09-01 22:30:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20265547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adaintywomanofmystery/pseuds/adaintywomanofmystery
Summary: Neil is on the run from vampire hunters when he stumbles across the Foxhole Sanctuary. There are all sorts of other non-humans taking refuge there, though there’s one Faerie in particular that catches his eye. Neil doesn’t know what he’s looking for, but he just might have found it anyway.Written for the AFTG Summer Exchange, prompt for Vampire!Neil and Fae!Andrew. (Also Andrew taking care of sick Neil if you squint).





	We’ve died for so long, let’s just get out alive

**Author's Note:**

> This story is for @kittyfeathersflying on tumblr. 
> 
> Title from the song Damascus by Nerina Pallot
> 
> This ended up being much longer than I expected, but I'm happy with how it turned out. I tried my best for the prompt, so I really hope you like it!

Neil collapses against the wall of the alley, clutching at the gaping wound on his side. His heightened senses are all washed out in pain; he strains to focus so he can listen for signs of pursuit. He hears nothing, so he takes a moment to catch his breath. The wound is too deep and he’s lost too much blood for his supernatural healing to fix him quickly; he’ll have to keep moving until he can find somewhere to hide and heal. 

He curses his carelessness at letting his father’s hunting group get that close, before limping out of the alley and down another narrow side street. It’s early morning so he’ll have to find shelter sooner than later. He’s unable to think much beyond a steady mantra of _ away away away_, and the buildings are all starting to blur together, but he forces himself on through sheer force of will. 

He tries door after door, looking for somewhere private he can hide without trespassing. The rule against entering a dwelling without permission is a bitch when you’re on the run, but he’s found it only applies to places that are currently inhabited, meaning he’s learned to make do with abandoned and condemned buildings.

He’s about to give up and try to find a sheltered alley or something when he spots the door. The building is not particularly noteworthy; worn out without being completely run down, but the door is solid, and most importantly there’s a plaque that reads, _ Enter, All Friends in Need. _ Neil touches the door and he can feel the wards push back against his fingertips. He’s stayed in a couple of sanctuaries—with his mother before she died—often enough to recognize them.

_Friend,_ he thinks desperately and grabs the door handle, pushing through the wards with ease. A bell tinkles above the door, signaling his arrival. Shadows move towards him, but everything is blurry and he can’t make out faces. 

An arm comes into his field of vision, and in his disoriented state Neil jerks back, falling over in his haste to avoid the hands. Everything sounds like it’s underwater and that’s when Neil realizes his body is shutting down to try and repair itself, a defense mechanism triggered when he is close to death.

He closes his eyes, letting the darkness take him, not caring anymore. He is just… so… tired…

*

“He’s waking up,” a voice says from above Neil. 

“Go get Abby,” another voice says.

“Don’t let anything exciting happen while I’m gone,” the first voice whines before footsteps fade away.

When Neil opens his eyes he has to blink a couple of times to make sure he’s not seeing double, but the two identical blonde heads leaning over him remain stubbornly separate. Behind them, a bright light shines and Neil has to squint to see anything. 

He tries to sit up and the twin faces retreat to give him space, but he is only barely able to prop himself up on his elbows before collapsing back onto the unidentified hard surface he is lying on. 

Neil takes stock of his surroundings quickly, just as his mother trained him to do. The room he is in is small and dark, no light source other than the one above him. All of the windows are blocked by heavy black-out curtains. He’s lying on a flat, uncomfortable wooden table in the back corner of a sparsely furnished room. There’s a bag with first aid supplies laid out on a small cart beside the table.

There are two doors, one on the wall across from him and one on the wall to his right. He has a straight shot to both doors if he could actually make it to one of them. There are no objects close enough for him to grab to use as a weapon if it comes down to it, so his best option is to run, which—in the state he is in— is not ideal.

The only occupants of the room are the two blonde twins that are watching him, one with open curiosity and perhaps a touch of hostility, the other with blank apathy. There’s something off about them; they are child-sized, but there’s something ethereal about them that makes the hairs on Neil’s arm stand on end which indicates they are probably not children and definitely not mortal.

Neil only has a hazy recollection of the events following the unfortunate reunion with his father, and the thought that he might be nearby makes Neil’s chest tighten with fear and sends adrenaline rushing through him like a lightning strike. He brutally pushes away the panic and forces himself to focus on his current situation.

“Whaaa…” Neil croaks. His throat is as dry as a desert and he coughs, trying to get the words out. Everything hurts—but in an ‘I got hit by a slow-moving car’ way, not an ‘I got run over by a car and then it backed up and ran over me again’ way, which is better than Neil thought he was going to feel, and so he begins the arduous task of trying to get to his feet so he can leave this strange place as soon as possible. 

At that moment one of the doors open and a woman enters the room, holding a cup in one hand. He can see a number of people crowded into the doorway, but the woman shoos them back before approaching Neil. 

He tenses then hisses at the sharp pain that radiates from his right side. The woman stops a couple of feet away from Neil, holding out her hand in a placating gesture.

“Peace,” She says in a pleasant voice, “We mean you no harm. You’re at the Foxhole Sanctuary in Palmetto, South Carolina. You’ve been injured badly and I’ve been tending your wounds. My name is Abigail Winfield, though you can call me Abby.”

Neil regards her warily before letting some of the tension out of his shoulders. What she says brings back fuzzy memories of finding this place, so he slumps back onto the table, the fight draining out of him. 

He feels ready to pass out, so he focuses on his senses to ground himself in the moment: There’s chatter outside the room, and shifting feet, the wood is smooth and polished beneath his fingertips, and there’s a wonderful smell coming from Abby’s direction, though he can’t identify it. 

Neil opens his eyes, not realizing he’d closed them and tries to muster fear or vigilance, or just _something,_ but there’s just exhaustion and hunger, both of which he decides to ignore. Abby is speaking quietly to the blonde twins, and one of them is shaking his head. Neil focuses on their conversation and is able to pick out some pieces;

“…not dangerous…”

“…don't know what…”

“…can barely move…”

Neil would feel more annoyed that they were gossiping about him while he was right there, but he realizes he’s drifting again and struggles awake. The apathetic blonde twin is now glaring at him and Abby is approaching him again.

Neil decides he’s had enough of this. He gathers his strength then pushes himself up and off the table. He intends to skirt around the others and run to the door, but his legs won’t hold him and he ends up collapsing immediately.

“Oh please don’t try to leave,” Abby tuts at him. She moves to approach him but is stopped by one of the twins who waves her back and approaches in her place. He prods at Neil with his shoe and Neil tries to shift backward, but the room is spinning and the people blur together like some twisted carnival ride.

“I’m fine,” Neil informs the person-shaped blur in front of him, though his words are undercut by his current occupation of the floor, which he realizes with some consternation is not going to change without assistance.

“Be careful, would you Andrew. He’s still very sick.”

There’s a huff of what might be amusement and then strong arms are lifting Neil as if he weighs nothing and he’s back on the table. He tries to twist away, but he’s too weak. Suddenly he’s propped up against the wall behind him as Abby approaches with the glass she was holding when she came in. 

“Drink this,” Abby instructs, her tone of voice making it clear it’s not a suggestion.

Abby hands him the glass which contains a thick red liquid. Blood. 

Neil knows what it is immediately and he recoils despite the desperate ache in his jaw as his fangs reveal themselves. He knows it’s necessary, but he still hates it, hates what he’s been turned into with violence only added to by the hatred he’s experienced at the hands of so many others. Even other non-mortals often look at him with disdain.

“Is there something the matter with it? I’m sorry it’s not fresh, but there’s only so much we can do. If it’s gone cold I can warm it up again. Or I can get you a chilled glass if you prefer,” Abby says to him before turning to the twin she called Andrew and asking him to tilt Neil’s head back.

Then there’s liquid flooding his mouth and he has no choice but to swallow. He hates it, but mostly he hates how good it feels. It’s been too long since he allowed this. He’s been able to last longer by eating regular food, but he didn’t realize how much of a toll avoiding this has taken on him until now.

He still has a lot of healing left to do, so he lets the darkness take him once more.

*

This time when he wakes up he feels much better, and the knowledge of where he is and what happened comes back quickly. He lies there, pretending to be asleep to assess the room and gain an advantage if he has to try and escape.

A voice from the other side of the room says, “Are you going to try and run again?”

Neil huffs in frustration at being caught and sits up. That trick has worked in the past, so he’s not sure how he got caught. 

He’s now lying on a bed in a different room that looks like a miniature hospital. There’s only one exit that Neil can see and one window. He’s wearing different clothing than when he came in, and he tries not to think about what they saw to patch up his wound. 

Lifting the edge of his borrowed shirt he sees bandages wrapped around his midsection that he can guess are hiding stitches. Being a… vampire—even after all this time he has trouble admitting it to himself—he has extraordinary healing, but even that wasn’t enough to repair so much damage in so little time.

Remembering he isn’t alone, he looks up sharply, silently reprimanding himself for his temporary distraction. The speaker is one of the blonde twins from yesterday. He wrestles with his uncooperative memory for a minute before guessing, “Andrew?”

The boy raises an eyebrow but replies, “So you were conscious yesterday. What is your name then? It’s only fair.” He says this with a tone that implies Neil has a better answer.

The blond’s response is not a straightforward answer, but now that he’s not actively dying Neil can clearly see that Andrew is one of the Fae. He has an aura that exudes ethereal grace with a sense of danger lurking just under the surface.

As one of the Fae, Andrew is very unlikely to ever give real answers. Neil knows not to trust him; as a liar himself he’s aware there are many ways to lie without saying anything untrue.

Neil considers how to respond before deciding it’s too much work to come up with a new alias. He hasn’t been using the name Neil Josten for that long and it’s unlikely he’s going to stick around anyway. He can just pick a new one when he leaves. He considers not answering, but the Fae are very particular about gifts and exchanges—even if it’s only words—and Neil does not want to get on his bad side just yet.

“You can call me Neil,” he finally says. This isn’t a lie either, even if it isn’t the truth.

Judging by the way Andrew looks at him, his intention has not gone unnoticed.

“Well this has been charming, but it’s best if I leave now,” Neil says. He’s not sure how long he’s been here, but he knows he needs to already be gone if he wants a chance at outrunning the hunters before they pick up his trail.

He hoists himself off the bed, gritting his teeth to hold back a groan of pain. He knows he shouldn’t be moving so soon, but he can’t afford to wait. He keeps a close eye on Andrew who has not moved to stop him.

Neil has only made it halfway to the door when it opens and Neil’s father walks in. Neil doesn’t even pause to think before he throws the curtains aside and opens the window. It’s midday and the sun is shining brightly. The moment the light hits his skin he can feel the irritation. Prolonged exposure will eventually bubble and crack the skin, literally cooking him alive, but only if he isn’t fast enough. They’re only on the second floor and Neil can see a dumpster beside the building. If he aims for there and runs down that alley…

Neil is already halfway out the window when he gets a better look at the man who is not actually his father. He freezes, which gives Andrew enough time to catch up and extract him from the window, quickly closing the curtains again. 

Andrew keeps a tight grip on his clothed upper arm, away from the new burns. Neil has to fight not to lean against him as the adrenaline leaves, leaving him shaky and in pain. At least he doesn’t think he tore any of his stitches. The brief exposure to the sun, however, has given Neil a terrible sunburn. He’s had worse before so he does his best to ignore the pain.

“Damnit Minyard, I told you to watch him!” The man in the doorway says. 

“I was watching him. It’s not my fault the asshole is fast,” Andrew says, swearing again when he sees the red skin on Neil’s arms and probably his face. Neil pokes at it, watching the skin go white before fading quickly into red again.

“What the fuck was that?” The man in the doorway asks. This is directed at Neil, who is still trying to calm himself down from the panic, which has made him dizzy with how quickly it has come and gone.

“I thought you were… someone else,” Neil pants, chest heaving as he tries to quell the rush of panic and adrenaline in his system.

Andrew grunts, hauling him back to the bed and pushing him down—not ungently all things considered—uttering a single, “stay,” with a glare before heading back to his chair, which he drags closer to the bed in case Neil decides to make another run for it.

The slamming of the window must have alerted the occupants of the adjacent rooms, because the nurse—Abby, Neil recalls— hurries into the room, trailed by half a dozen openly curious teenagers. 

Abby makes a strange noise when she sees him and immediately begins fussing over him. The older man allows the group of teenagers into the room then herds them against the far wall, out of Abby’s way.

“What happened?” She exclaims when she gets a good look at the burns. She walks over to a cabinet and rifles through it before pulling out a jar. 

“We’ve got ourselves a runner,” The man says. “Tried to escape out the window in broad daylight.” 

Someone sniggers and there’s some bumping and jostling in the group. Neil focuses on them to take his mind away from the pain. He hates being a spectacle, especially with so many eyes on him that can remember too many details, but he doesn’t have much of a choice.

Abby tsks in response as she begins to gently massage a mysterious salve into his skin. The relief is immediate. He’s too tired to fight her, so he lets her treat his sunburn, but when she moves to lift his shirt to check his stab wound he grabs her arm. Andrew is on his feet in a second, ready to intervene, but Neil releases her hand quickly.

“I’m fine,” he says, aiming a glare at the others, daring someone to challenge him. Abby frowns but she doesn’t press it, instead, cleaning up her supplies before leaving the room. 

“Anyway,” The older man says, drawing the attention of the room back to himself. “I wanted to introduce myself. My name is David Wymack and I’m the main proprietor of the Foxhole Sanctuary. You can call me Coach like the rest of these hooligans if you prefer. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with what a Sanctuary is, but we provide a place where any non-human can seek shelter and safety. As long as you are respectful of others and intend no harm you are welcome to stay for as long as you need. I hope you’ll stay until your injuries are healed, but you are free to leave whenever.”

“I shouldn’t stay,” Neil says. 

“No offense kid, but you don’t really seem like you have anywhere else to go. If you’re worried about being in danger I can assure you it is more than safe here. You saw wards when you got here, yes?”

Neil nods despite himself.

“Good. Those wards are just one line of defense around this place. No one who wants to hurt you can get you here.”

Neil wants to believe them so much it hurts, but the fear is too strong. He thought his mother could protect him too, and look where that got him. Now she’s dead and he is on his own. Still, Wymack isn’t wrong. Neil really doesn’t have anywhere else to go, especially with his injuries slowing him down so much. He spends a while weighing the pros and cons before he finally gives another slow nod.

Wymack looks relieved, though Neil has no idea why, seeing how Neil is of no use to any of them here and may be actively putting them all in danger. 

“I’ll let the others show you around the place after you’ve had more rest. And someone get this kid something to eat, he looks practically see-through.”

With that, Wymack rises from his seat to leave. He shoos the others from the room except for Andrew who goes back to his original seat. After the others are gone, Abby pokes her head back into the room. 

“Is he done giving our guest a hard time?” She’s holding another glass in her hands and Neil’s stomach threatens to rebel. He’d already suffered through it once, why was she going to make him drink it again? 

All Neil can hear in his head is his father’s voice; _Freak. Monster. Abomination._ Neil is suddenly caught in memories of his childhood again, being taught to hate all non-humans. Learning how to hunt them like his father. Until… until that day…

“…Neil. Neil, can you hear me? It’s okay, you’re safe.” Abby’s voice sounds far away. Neil’s struggling for the surface but he can’t break free. It’s like he’s forgotten how to use his lungs, and his senses are scrambled. He closes his eyes to try and block it out, but it’s too much all at once.

He flinches when he feels the hand grip the back of his neck, but the touch is grounding, a solid point to focus on that brings him back to the here and now. He takes shaky breaths until he’s able to get himself completely under control. When he opens his eyes Andrew takes a step back, removing his hand.

He frowns at Neil before asking, “What was that?”

“Nothing. I’m fine,”

This earns him a skeptical look from both parties but no one tries to fight him on it. Abby sits in a chair by the head of the bed and hands him the glass. It’s chilled this time, condensation collecting on the sides and making Neil’s hand feel clammy and gross. Neil stares at it as if concentrating hard enough will magically make it something else.

“Drink it,” Abby says in a soothing tone. “You’ll feel better, and then we can leave you to get more rest.”

“I already had some before right? I’m fine. I don’t need it.” Neil puts the cup on the side table and wipes his hand on the bedspread, trying to pretend it doesn’t exist.

“You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means,” Andrew interrupts. At Neil’s blank stare he sighs and turns away.

“My best lines are wasted on you people,” Andrew says flatly.

“Quiet you,” Abby says, affectionately swatting at Andrew. “Well, how often do you usually need to drink blood? I’m sure a little extra won’t hurt. It will help you heal faster.” 

“Often enough,” Neil replies, keeping his answer purposefully vague. He suppresses the urge to fidget, not wanting to give away how uncomfortable he is. He just stares straight ahead instead, not making eye contact with either of them.

“Just answer the question,” Andrew all but growls, clearly done with the lies and evasions.

“Once a month,” Neil finally admits. While on the run with his mother it wasn’t safe for them to stop and hunt very often. They were able to stretch it out with regular food, but there’s only so long they could go before the bloodlust would kick in. Neil hates that feeling of losing control. Every time his drinks blood he feels like he’s losing a little more of who he was before.

“Once a month?” Abby gasps, “Oh you poor child. How could you possibly survive like that?” Neil just shrugs. He doesn’t really know what else to say. He has absolutely no idea what is supposed to be normal. It’s just been him and his mom figuring everything out on their own. Together. And now he’s all alone.

“I don’t need your pity. Don’t make this a bigger deal than it needs to be.”

“She’s not the one who’s being difficult right now,” Andrew points out.

“What are you still doing here? This doesn’t concern you.” Neil just wants to be left alone

“I am one of the protectors of this sanctuary. I don’t want you here either, but I was out-voted. You get to stay and so I will protect you, from them,” his eyes flicker to the window, indicating the outside world, “and from yourself. But if you do anything to harm anyone else here you will not live to regret it. Do you understand?”

Before Neil has a chance to say anything, Andrew cuts him off with, “Nope. Don’t care. Glad we cleared that up,” he says, turning his gaze back on Neil.

His stare is so intense, even when the rest of his face remains expressionless, that Neil feels he has no choice but to believe him, taking strange comfort from his lack of caring. Neil returns his stare, not willing to back down. 

“Anyway,” Abby says, obviously trying to steer the conversation back to the topic on hand. “I assure you, all our stores are ethically sourced from willing volunteers,” She smiles at him then with such a kindly expression that he’s afraid he’ll burst into flames on the spot.

Neil can’t think of any other reason to refuse without looking suspicious, so he holds his breath and downs the contents of the glass, setting it down with a bit too much force. He lies down and turns his back to them, signaling an end to the conversation.

Abby takes the hint, gathering up the glass before leaving the room. Andrew lingers, studying Neil. He can feel his eyes staring at him before he finally turns to leave.

“Denial doesn’t suit you,” Andrew says, almost like an afterthought, just before leaving the room. Neil grinds his teeth. He gets the feeling Andrew sees more than he wants him to. 

Now that he’s alone he finally has the opportunity to rest. After everything that has happened, though, he remains tense for hours before finally slipping into an anxious sleep.

*

Neil meets the rest of the Sanctuary’s full-time inhabitants once he is able to get up and walk around without a stabbing pain in his gut.

He finds out Abby is a witch and that she mainly uses her magic for healing and maintaining the wards. Then there’s Wymack, once a high school teacher and football coach for at-risk youth, he was bitten by a werewolf and driven out of town, after which he met Abby and they began this sanctuary.

He learns that they run a bar on the first floor that caters to supernatural clientele and that the sanctuary resides in the upper levels, and that’s how they stay afloat. The full-time inhabitants take turns on shift at the bar which is only open at night.

There are a couple of loners that lurk in their rooms and Neil is happy to avoid them. He tries to wrap his head around the layout of the building to get an idea of the number of residents but gives up when someone mentions an extension charm. It explains how he didn’t see the place for what it was when he first arrived. Though that might have also been the blood loss.

Neil meets two of the full-time members on the first day Abby lets him have visitors. Or more accurately the day she gives up trying to keep the others out of her little hospital set up. There’s a disproportionately high number of teenagers—or at least they look like teenagers. It’s honestly hard to tell with non-humans.

He’s sitting in bed when an overly eager boy drifts into the room carrying a tray with an assortment of fruits. A tall blonde girl, with looks so sharp they could kill, follows behind him. 

“Coach sent me up with some fruit for our guest,” the boy says with a dazzling smile. Allison is standing behind him and she snorts. 

“Careful, he’s one of the Fae. If you eat it then they own you,” She says with a sharp smile. 

Neil can’t tell if she’s kidding or not, but it looks like a challenge and his temper flares instantly. Plus the fruit looks so good, and it’s been so long since he’s been able to eat regular food. 

“That’s the Fae’s problem then,” Neil retorts, reaching for some strawberries. The girl blinks, clearly taken aback by his brash attitude, before her smile widens.

“I can’t tell if you’re brave or just stupid.”

“Neither. I just have an empty stomach and the ability to make my presence everyone’s problem,” Neil says. He takes the fruit but doesn’t eat it just yet, waiting to see their reactions. He doesn’t think Wymack would let them trick him like this, but caution has never hurt.

“Oh don’t listen to Allison. She just likes to cause problems,” The boy says. He smiles warmly at Neil, but Neil isn’t easily fooled by kindness. 

“You’re so boring, Nicky,” Allison grumbles. “We’re going to have such fun with you, sweetheart.” This is aimed at Neil, who internally shudders at what she might consider fun. 

Neil doesn’t bother correcting her, seeing how he’s planning on leaving soon. They seem pretty harmless, so Neil eats the fruit. It’s sweet and fresh and best of all it doesn’t curse him, so he takes more.

Neil finds out later that the others joke around with each other like this often and do their best to give Wymack and Abby a migraine. There’s eight of them in total, and they apparently collectively refer to themselves as Foxes. Neil doesn’t think any of them are Kitsune, so he assumes it must be in homage to their current home. 

Aside from Nicky and Allison, Neil has only met Andrew and his sullen twin, who he finds out is named Aaron. Neil also finds out upon being properly introduced that Aaron angers really easily.

When Nicky introduces Aaron he assumes Neil can tell Aaron is also a member of the Fae, and so doesn’t specify. Since Neil specializes in pissing off other people, he can’t help but cause trouble. He calls Aaron a Leprechaun and watches as Aaron’s face turns a satisfying shade of red.

“Say that again and you lose your kneecaps, asshole,” Aaron spits back.

“Oh sorry, dwarf then?” Neil says with a falsely innocent expression. 

“I’m going to kill him,” Aaron informs the others, but all he receives is laughter from Nicky and an eyebrow twitch from Andrew. Despite the fact that he can’t lie, Neil isn’t too worried. He’s survived people way more determined than a pesky pixie like him.

Neil also learns that Andrew has made specific deals to protect Aaron, Nicky—who he is also related to, though they don’t look alike— and a tall boy named Kevin, and is usually around either one or all of them. Neil realizes that as long as he only attacks Andrew’s group verbally he won’t be gutted, and makes sure to flaunt this fact liberally.

Soon after his encounter with Aaron, Neil meets two more of the foxes named Matt and Dan. Matt is an overly friendly Satyr, and his hooves make little clip-clops as he paces the small room Neil has just been relocated to. Neil is at first put off by his affectionate attitude and desire to be friends, but it’s hard to dislike someone as genuine as Matt seems to be. 

Dan, on the other hand, is a Forest Dryad who radiates confidence and a cool demeanour, but her compassion runs deep and it’s not hard to see why she and Matt work so well together. As forest spirits they also share a connection to nature that others won’t necessarily relate to. It turns out Dan and Matt lived in the same place until deforestation took their home and they ended up here.

Neil learns Allison is a Siren when she tries to tempt him with her looks and realizes quickly it’s getting her nowhere. She has the ability to change her siren song to something else that would appeal to him more, but instead, she just looks at Neil thoughtfully and goes back to her girlfriend, Renee.

One of the last foxes Neil meets is a Banshee named Renee. She has a sweet demeanour, even if she gives off an aura of fear and pain that makes Neil want to stay far away from her. It’s useful, however, as Renee is in charge of protecting all of the foxes outside Andrew’s group, and most people never even get close enough to be a threat. Her white hair is pretty well-groomed for a banshee, with the tips dyed in rainbow pastels. Neil has crossed paths with a banshee before, and the encounter did not end well, so he decides to steer clear of her just in case.

The last mystery is Kevin, who Neil rarely sees without Andrew around. Despite the fact that Andrew keeps “checking in” on Neil, he learns very little about Kevin. Neil doesn’t know whether Andrew keeps tabs on him to make sure he hasn’t run off or if Andrew still considers Neil a threat, but Andrew keeps his distance, for the most part, so Neil doesn’t worry about it too much. 

The more Neil learns, the more curious he is. Neil promises himself he’ll leave as soon as he can walk without assistance, but somehow that deadline comes and goes. He argues with himself that he should wait until he has regained his stamina or else he won’t be able to run when the time comes. 

It’s a week later when Neil confronts Andrew about his constant watching. He gets a very frustrating shrug in response, which isn’t technically a lie but is still completely unhelpful.

When Neil’s excuses for why he isn’t leaving stop making sense the other foxes decide he is staying forever, ignoring his admittedly weak protests. Neil does not want to commit to anything, but before he knows it, he has a shift at the bar with the others.

Neil learns how to wait tables and mix drinks. When Andrew is teaching Neil he is surprisingly patient, compared to Kevin, who barks orders at him and gets frustrated whenever he does something wrong. Neil prefers to work with anyone else except one of the loners named Seth who snarls once at Neil and completely ignores him after that. Neil isn’t sure what he is and he’s not getting close enough to find out.

*

Almost a month into his stay and well past the point where he’d given up pretending he was going to leave, Neil makes his way into the empty bar after tossing and turning for hours instead of sleeping. Everyone runs on a nocturnal schedule, so it’s actually day time, but the thick curtains that Neil has found on all of the windows block out most of the light. 

Neil enters the main area to find Andrew sitting on the bar, feet dangling between bar stools and an open bottle of whiskey sitting beside him. Neil’s not sure if Wymack knows that Andrew dips into the alcohol stores, but he gets the feeling Wymack would let it slide anyway. His gruff exterior is a cover for his decidedly soft personality. 

Neil’s about to head back up the stairs when Andrew starts speaking. Neil freezes on the steps, caught off guard.

“You know Kevin is a vampire, just like you?”

Neil flinches at hearing _ that _ word flung around so carelessly, but he takes this as an invitation to join Andrew. He sits on the bar top, leaving a large gap between them. 

“He acted a lot like you when you first came in, all jumpy and acting guilty for existing. It was such a pain. He learned to get over himself though.” At this Andrew tips his head lazily to the side, staring at Neil from the corners of his eyes. The implication seems to be, _ like you will. _

Neil clenches his hands and sticks his chin out but remains silent. He can occasionally reign his temper in when he wants to, and what he wants is to know where Andrew is going with this.

“You’re a monster among monsters. You can give up your self-pity bullshit anytime.” Andrew says, obviously trying to provoke a reaction from Neil. It works. 

“Fuck you. You don’t know anything about me,” Neil snarls back.

“Then tell me something true Neil,” Andrew fires back, like a challenge.

“I hate vegetables,” It’s the first thing that comes to mind, and it’s not really a secret, even if Neil’s never told anyone. He’s never really had anyone to tell anyway. Neil’s not sure if Andrew was actually expecting a response since he stays quiet after.

“Your turn,” Neil adds.

“I’m afraid of heights.” Neil just nods and leaves it at that.

Andrew is the next one to speak, but this time he asks Neil a question. 

“Why won’t you drink blood? You don’t seem like the type to lose sleep over killing the innocent and all that.”  
Right for the weak spots then. Neil contemplates how he wants to answer the question for a while. Finally, he comes up with,

“I was raised to hate Vampires. It seems like some twisted cosmic joke that I got turned but it’s really just statistics. If you spend a lot of time around vampires hunting them at some point you’re going to get bitten, but even still it’s hard to let that training go. I do it to survive, but I don’t like it.” Neil shudders, remembering that awful night, but otherwise leaves it at that.

They let the air settle a bit before Neil asks his next question.

“Why aren’t you… wherever the Fae usually hang out? How did you end up here?”

Andrew side-eyes him again and says, “That’s too many questions, pick one.”

“Fine. Why did you end up here?”

Andrew shrugs, “There’s not any particular reason why here, but it’s safe for our kind and it’s protected by wards. There weren’t any better options.”

That wasn’t the question Neil wanted answered, but it was technically the question he’d asked, so he lets it go.

Andrew asks another question that’s less invasive and Neil answers and they go back and forth until they start to hear stirring from above. 

They go back upstairs since neither of them is on shift and part at the landing. Neil goes back to his own room and finally falls into an uneasy sleep. 

The next day Neil is feeling antsy again. He’s wondering if he shared too much, or if his father might be closing in, or if he’s putting everyone here in danger. He’s almost made up his mind to leave when Andrew knocks on his door.

Neil answers it, surprised by the visitor, but Andrew just says, “I could hear you pacing from my room,” in explanation for his sudden appearance.

They skip the pleasantries and small talk and jump straight to the point; Neil tells Andrew he wants to leave.

“I thought you had a spine, but I guess I was wrong. Are you afraid of the hunters or is it something else? Whatever, if you want to leave, leave. No one’s stopping you. But are you really going to throw this all away? I said I would protect you, and I don’t make promises lightly. So the only thing you are running from is yourself.”

With that, Andrew leaves as quickly as he arrived. He doesn’t storm away, but Neil gets that impression somehow anyway. In the end, Neil stays, and he tries not to think too hard about why.

A couple of nights later they both end up back downstairs. They sit quietly for a while until Neil asks a question and the whole game starts again. Neil’s not sure when it happens but at some point it just becomes routine to head downstairs when everyone else is asleep.

Andrew learns about Neil’s childhood as a vampire hunter, being taught early and sent into the field. How Neil’s father was cruel and would hurt him when he made a mistake. How he and his mother tolerated the abuse because they had nowhere else to go. 

Neil chokes up a bit when he gets to the part where he was on a raid with his parents when they were ambushed. How he and his mother were turned but his father was not. Neil doesn’t mention how his father looked him dead in the eye and shot him with a wooden crossbow bolt, but he doesn’t need to; it’s written all over his face.

In turn, Andrew describes what living in the Summer Court in the Faerie Realm was like. He dances around the topic, but Neil gets the sense it wasn’t as idyllic as he makes it sound. Andrew describes being banished from the Court after committing murder then finding out he has magical family already living in the mortal realm. Andrew looks at Neil as if daring him to say something about it, but Neil just shrugs. How can he judge?

At the end of every meeting like this, Neil tells Andrew he thinks he should leave. Every time Andrew has a different response. Sometimes he insults Neil, sometimes he makes up strange excuses why Neil shouldn’t leave; logic that bends but does not break. Sometimes it’s, “You have a shift tomorrow and you’re on garbage duty so don’t slack off.” 

Each time Neil threatens to leave Andrew tells him to stay, and so he does. Neil settles into the foxhole and for the first time he thinks, maybe he doesn’t want to leave. Maybe he doesn’t have to leave.

Of course, it’s never that easy. Neil should have known he would never get to keep this. 

It’s one of Neil’s nights off when Nicky knocks on his door.

“Hey Neil, a customer left this note for you at the bar. Or well, he said it was for the little red-headed vampire and I took that to be you, even though really your hair isn’t that red and…”

Neil takes the tiny folded piece of paper and waits until Nicky is finally finished talking and leaves to look at it. If his heart still beat it would have stopped right then. It was a calling card from his father. The actual message is meaningless, but the source is unmistakable. They have found him and they are going to attack if he doesn’t do something. He has to leave right now.

Even just thinking about leaving puts an ache in his chest so strong it surprises even him. He can’t tell anyone, can’t even tell Andrew. All of them would put everything they had at risk just to protect him.

Neil decides it’s best to leave just before dawn, that way no one in the Foxhole would notice him and he can try to get some distance before it’s too light out. The hunters would surely have surrounded the place, but at least he can try to lead them off. And if they get him, well that’s just one more vampire gone. No one will really notice anyway. It’s for the best.

Neil packs his things into a spare bag slowly. He isn’t used to having so many things to even put in a bag like this. He tries to distract himself, but the hours pass slowly. Eventually, the first floor is quiet and the sounds of footsteps mean the other foxes are heading to bed.

Neil opens his door quietly, making sure not to make a sound as he closes it. He turns around and almost jumps several feet in the air at the sight of Andrew casually sitting against the wall across from his door. Andrew’s one leg is stretched out in front of him and the other is bent at the knee, with his outstretched arm resting on top, lazily twirling an unlit cigarette between his fingers. He’s still in his uniform, complete with a dirty apron.

Neil looks guiltily at him, still frozen to the spot and unsure how to act after getting caught.

“I saw the strangest thing while on shift today,” Andrew drawls. His expression is bored, but his eyes bore holes into Neil. Neil stays quiet, waiting to see how this plays out. 

“From what you’ve told me, I assume the message wasn’t good.” Andrew’s eyes drift to the packed bag slung over Neil’s shoulder and his eyes narrow. He stands in one fluid motion, his controlled movements scream danger, but Neil feels nothing but reassurance. There’s nothing that can knock Andrew down, no secret to heavy for him to hold.

“Is your learning curve a horizontal line? I thought I told you to stay,” he says, getting into Neil’s space and backing him into the wall. 

“I can’t risk it. You’re all in danger as long as I stay here.” They’re so close, Neil can see the anger etched into Andrew’s face under the layers of fake apathy.

“Oh Neil, no one asked for a martyr. Do you really think this is the first time someone has brought danger to the sanctuary? It’s what the sanctuary is for, so don’t you dare try pulling that bullshit on me now.”

“You don’t know what he’s like—”

“Shut up. I don’t want to hear it. You’re under my protection, so you let me deal with it. _Your_ job is to stay here and not make _my_ job more difficult. They’re trying to flush you out because they can’t get to you here. You’re safe if you would just accept that.”

“Why do you even care? Wouldn’t it be easier for you if I left?”

“You are so goddamn stupid, I actually don’t know how you have survived this long.”

What does… oh. Oh no. Neil is way in over his head and he never even realized.

“You like me,” Neil says, as the realization slowly washes through him. 

“I hate you actually,” Andrew responds, but Neil has spent enough time with Andrew to recognize his brand of truthfulness. 

“How come you never told me?”

“Shut up,” Andrew says before grabbing Neil by the front of his shirt and crushing their lips together. Neil is shocked for a moment, but quickly forgets whatever he was thinking before. Andrew pulls back after a moment but rests his forehead against Neil’s, their noses just barely touching.

“Stay,” Andrew breathes into the small space between them.

“Okay.”

Neil’s not sure what’s going to happen in the future, but he knows that he isn't going to give any of this up without a fight. For the first time in his life, Neil is home.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and Kudos are always appreciated. Come yell at me on Tumblr at reneeisbuffjesus.


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